


Road to Recovery

by snowflake97



Series: 365 Day Writing Challenge [20]
Category: Night at the Museum (2006 2009)
Genre: Claustrophobia, First Movie, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-30
Updated: 2015-01-30
Packaged: 2018-03-09 16:49:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3257222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snowflake97/pseuds/snowflake97
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ahkmenrah has claustrophobia. Teddy feels guilty.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Road to Recovery

For about a week of nights after he was finally freed from his sarcophagus, Ahkmenrah took his time exploring the museum, meeting all of the exhibits, learning about their history, and generally becoming friends with as many people as he could. 

There were a few people that the young Pharaoh became particularly fond of; Teddy, Sacagawea, Attila, Jedediah, Octavius, and even Dexter (the capuchin’s rather evil shenanigans were quite appealing to the Egyptian’s slightly morbid sense of humour). 

Obviously Ahkmenrah was particularly fond of the night guard - his saviour (to some degree) - he was incredibly grateful to the man. 

The group were currently sitting in the night guard’s office, seeking solace in the silence of the basement; the exhibits were being rather loud that night, and they couldn’t have a proper conversation over the volume. 

Plus, the young Pharaoh had been on the verge of a panic attack, the mass of bodies in the atrium causing his claustrophobia to rear its head. 

It had taken all of them to calm him down; the full-sized people pulling him away, to somewhere less cramped, and the encouraging words from the miniatures.  
Dexter sat on Larry’s shoulder, trying to be reassuring in his own way; without getting in the way (for once). 

Once they were all sitting in the office, they were conversing about random things; anything to take the Egyptian’s mind off of his fear. 

Thankfully, it worked, and the young man was laughing joyously within minutes. 

He especially enjoyed the story about Larry’s first day, when Jedediah’s men had tied him up, and attempted to run him over with their train - as was said, the Pharaoh had a fairly morbid sense of humour.

———

Ten minutes before the sun was about to rise, Larry took the miniatures and Dexter back to their exhibits. Attila and Sacagawea, whose exhibits were furthest away from the Pharaoh’s, left for theirs as well, leaving only the former King and President in the Egyptian’s tomb. 

“Teddy.” Ahkmenrah whispered, looking fearfully at the sarcophagus. 

“I am so sorry, my boy.” Theodore said, thinking back on the 50 or so years that he had left the Pharaoh locked up in the case, and feeling terribly guilty. 

“I know it wasn’t your fault.” the younger (physically) man replied, smiling at the elder man. “Can you help me in?” He asked, removing the lid to his display. 

Teddy took the Pharaoh’s hand, and helped him into the sarcophagus. 

“Remember, close your eyes, and count.” The Egyptian nodded, closing his eyes, but not letting go of the former president’s hand. 

“One… Two… Three…” Ahkmenrah made it to fifty, when he drifted off, falling to sleep with five minutes to sunrise. His hand loosened from his grip on the elder man’s, and Teddy was able to close the lid of the Egyptian’s sarcophagus. 

He just made it back to the atrium of the museum, and onto his horse, into position for sunrise. 

It was all worth it though, running to his horse, so he wasn’t caught in the wrong place at sun-up, as long as he could begin to make up for the half-century of torture he inadvertently inflicted upon Ahkmenrah, and the smile that he could see on the younger man’s face as he drifted off was definitely worth the slight loss of breath the exercise caused.


End file.
